Kissing in the Tunnel

The British Film Institute National Archive is brilliant and it’s possible to watch quite a lot of old films online. I’ve watched many precious clips from British film history, like this kiss from 1899. It’s the earliest film kiss held by the BFI National Archive.

‘This story derives from a popular magic lantern slide show and shows a couple in a railway carriage, going into a dark, Freudian tunnel, taking the opportunity to steal a kiss. As the train emerges into the light the couple move apart in a guilty fashion, and although scarcely enough to make your Victorian grandmother blush, it gives the scene its slight frisson of naughtiness. (Bryony Dixon)’